Jogi Goes Trendy

Me and being fashionable is an oxymoron. As I am the worst consumer ever, vaguely recognizing such trendy yoga brands as Lulu Lemon and I never have I heard about Lorna Jane – an Australian brand promoting active lifestyle and selling sportswear for women, until a week ago. What could convince me to go to its shop’s opening event and enjoy it (aside from a free yoga class, snacks and a bag of samples – usual incentive for promo event hunters)?

As a yoga teacher I take every chance to go to the other side of the barricade. Being a Yoga consumer and a student is a great possibility to be inspired, to learn new tricks, variations of well-know poses and transitions as well as to refresh memory and look at things from a different angle. Frankly speaking, I was just curious about how a Yoga class can be organized in such a ridiculous place as Gurney Plaza. So, as soon I saw the announcement about that Vanity Fair, I signed up.

Yes it’s possible to do an engaging class in a shop. During that class, I learned some new variations of poses and tried different systems of holding them (each pose was held for couple of breaths, at least four times on each side). It gave me a nice stretch as my body got used to my usual arsenal of yoga poses. I also saw a new face of yoga – “Asian Style Hatha” I would call it, as putting random people into Hanumasana (Splits) and Pigeon Pose wouldn’t be my first choice as a yoga teacher rooted in the West. The competitive spirit of Asia struck me in the face… or my short psoas muscle, but I started to think about some of my classes as being too soft and not challenging enough. Even beginners need to try some crazy asana if we don’t want to convince them that Yoga consists not only of dogs, warriors and triangles. Be aware Jee Yoga students, arm balances and splits are coming! Btw, I experienced similar approach in an ashram in India, my knees being stepped on whilst engaging in Fish Pose with Lotus… Ashram or shopping centre, these days you can learn something new about Yoga everywhere!

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I am rather a loner and whatever I am doing, it’s easier to focus when I am alone. This also applies to my yoga practice which is definitely more internal as I usually do it with my eyes closed (as much as I can), focusing on sensations in my body and mental activity. I don’t need a company for that, right? However, when yoga became my lifestyle, I started to crave spending more time with like-minded people and found out that Yoga can also be a cool activity to do with friends. It doesn’t have to be serious and deep all the time. The event was a great chance to meet new people and share experiences. It’s especially important when being in a new city and wanting to learn more about the yoga community there. Thanks to meeting lovely Regina and having a chat about best styles for beginners, her motives and benefits of the practice, I got a fresh look on my approach to teaching Yoga in Penang.

The class was led by a teacher with 26 years of experience and a mother of six. Need more inspiration? No more excuses, ladies! Although, she didn’t speak much English and I didn’t speak Mandarin either, I still could follow the class pretty well. Actually, I enjoyed the teacher’s silent presence and it made me think about the unnecessary explanations I use and attempts to polish my English to do it even better.

And last, but not least, I got a sample of some pretty nice body scrub, a box of muesli bars and a tiny cooking book with healthy recipes. Jackpot!

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